Books, Glorious, Books

August 9th

Today is Book Lovers Day.  I absolutely love a great book.  You know the kind that you are up half the night (or all night) because you have to read just one more chapter.  Those are great.  There are love stories (real ones, not the ridiculous Harlequin style stuff), the comedies, the westerns, the biographies of amazing people, the fiction, the "based on a true story," the fantasies, and the list goes on and on.  There are so many wonderfully penned books to devour.

One of the first books that I really fell in love with was Plato's Allegory of the Cave.  I loved relating it to so much of life at the time, and it still applies today.  It was my first experience at a book that made me stop and think, ponder, and allow for me to apply something to myself and who I was and wanted to be.  I'd read books that came close, but that was my first totally life changing experience with a book outside of the two that always do it (The Bible and The Book of Mormon).  I think that was where the idea of being a therapist of some kind really began to solidify.  I'd thought about it, but this one made me see how we can influence others for the better (hopefully not worse).  The idea that I could do that was alluring.  It also was the beginning of the stirrings to be a motivational speaker of some kind.  I wanted people to see more than just the facade, the reality of all they were capable of becoming.  Dreaming....a good book plants those seeds.  Pondering brings the plan that leads to fruition.

I recently came across a new book that I am so excited to read.  It's called Life Rocks! How Firm Is Your Foundation? by John Bytheway (you can get it here:  click here for book ).  His video montage for the book caught my attention, and then I read an excerpt from this fabulous book.  In the first chapter, Bytheway talks about experiencing difficult times and our reactions to them.  Sometimes we complain.  A quote form this chapter reads, "Maybe the Lord loves you too much to let your life be easy. If your life were easy, you wouldn’t grow a bit, you wouldn’t learn a thing, you wouldn’t become strong and courageous and experienced. If everything happened exactly the way you wanted, you’d become a weakling, and you’d never know what you were made of."  The preceding text and what follows were simply amazing and food for thought.

I also love books with strong women.  Strong, to me, isn't the stereotypical feminist of the 80's and 90's who didn't need anyone and could do whatever she wanted, but a woman who knows who she is (or at least figures it out during the book), has convictions and stands by them, protects those most precious parts of her and the people in her life, and isn't afraid to be vulnerable.  Her courage and faith lead her to do the best things, not just what she is capable of doing.  My favorite female heroine is Esther from the Bible.  I also love Jane Eyre.  My modern day heroine is found in a biography as well as in books she authored herself.  That is Marjorie Hinckley.  (Everything Marjorie)  She was real, and spoke the truth (which usually came out with quite a bit of humor), and loved with all her heart.  She is a woman who is quoted on a regular basis for those words of wisdom.

Literature doesn't just simply entertain.  The best books teach.  The best books inspire.  The best books make us think.  The best books empower us with something new we didn't know or understand about "us" before we read them.  Grab a good book and start reading.